She had to protect herself.
Xia Ziyu was losing her composure.
What Xia Xiaolan said at the Xidan Police Station wasn’t a joke—in just a few days, the situation had taken a sharp turn for the worse.
How laughable was it that a thug would turn himself in?
It could only mean that Xia Xiaolan had cornered the thug—if he didn’t confess, something far worse awaited him… It must be the Zhou family’s intervention.
Xia Ziyu was terrified.
Only now did she realize her petty schemes were useless. Despite her arrogance, she had no real power to leverage.
How could she possibly stand against the Zhou family?
The Wang family couldn’t help her.
Though Wang Jianhua wanted to help and had been trying to establish connections with contacts in Shangdu, as an undergraduate student, without Wang Guangping’s involvement, building cross-provincial relationships wasn’t so simple.
Wang Guangping had laid down his conditions—if Wang Jianhua wanted to help Xia Ziyu, he would have to go on a blind date with Director Zhang’s daughter:
“I can’t help anymore, but your Uncle Zhang has extensive connections and can make things happen. I don’t think this was just Xia Ziyu’s father acting alone, but even if it was, do you think the Zhou family will let Xia Ziyu off?”
They definitely wouldn’t.
That day at the Xidan Police Station, Xia Xiaolan hadn’t pursued Zhang Cui’s surveillance of Liu Fen—she had been waiting for this moment to corner Ziyu.
What is love?
Is it staying together through hardship, or protecting the one you love?
Wang Jianhua faced an agonizing choice.
Ziyu had stood by him through difficult times—how could he abandon her when she faced a crisis?
Wang Jianhua couldn’t bring himself to tell Xia Ziyu.
Xia Ziyu knew well that even if Wang Guangping hadn’t been transferred and remained Deputy Director of Higher Education, he wouldn’t help her.
When the Wang family was down and out, they had accepted her help.
After their recovery, they had been trying to shake her off.
If she was going down, Xia Ziyu would drag them with her—she was Wang Jianhua’s fiancée after all.
Xia Ziyu reassured Zhang Cui, saying she would find a solution.
She then dressed up carefully and arranged to meet Wang Jianhua. In the guesthouse, Xia Ziyu removed her clothes piece by piece and leaned into Wang Jianhua’s embrace:
“Jianhua, help me one last time.”
They had already tasted forbidden fruit before. Wang Jianhua, a man in his twenties at his physical prime, couldn’t resist Xia Ziyu’s seduction.
Besides, there was nothing improper about being intimate with her—they were engaged.
Wang Jianhua hadn’t made his choice yet. They were a couple, engaged to be married—what was wrong with sleeping together?
To date, Xia Ziyu was Wang Jianhua’s first woman.
Men are susceptible to beauty, and while Wang Jianhua hadn’t forgotten Xia Xiaolan, the carefully dressed Xia Ziyu was quite attractive. With Xia Ziyu’s complete devotion, Wang Jianhua felt like he was in heaven.
At such moments, men would agree to anything.
Wang Jianhua felt guilty—though he maintained a tough exterior, he knew that once his father made a decision, he would eventually submit.
After Wang Guangping and Ran Shuyu returned to the city, they had always disliked Xia Ziyu, looking down on Xia Zhangzheng and Zhang Cui as mere street vendors. Now Xia Zhangzheng couldn’t even be a vendor—he was a criminal… If Wang Jianhua married Xia Ziyu, having a criminal for a father-in-law would not only affect his political screening but would significantly impact his prospects.
“Ziyu, I’ll help you with anything I can! Tell me what to do.”
Xia Ziyu rested against Wang Jianhua’s chest, “Jianhua, you’re the only one I can trust. Whether my father did it or not, I don’t believe their investigation results. I need to go to Shangdu myself and find a way to see my father. If I can’t clear my father’s name, Xia Xiaolan and the Zhou family won’t let me off either!”
Wang Jianhua held her tightly:
“What do you need me to do?”
“An introduction letter—a blank introduction letter. Nobody can know I’m secretly returning to Shangdu. Wait until I’m on the train before requesting leave from school for me.”
…
Xia Xiaolan’s words had pointed the police in another direction.
What was Xia Zhangzheng’s motive for the crime?
At the Anqing County Police Station, Chief Liang provided a clue by digging up a case from the previous year:
“A male teacher at Anqing County First High School named Zhao Gang was arrested for attempted burglary. According to his confession, he had lost considerable money gambling and had creditors chasing him, which drove him to desperate measures. This teacher tried to break into the guesthouse room where student Xia Xiaolan and Teacher Sun Tian were resting, the night before the preliminary exam and was caught in the act… Looking back now, there are many suspicious points!”
Indeed suspicious—attempting burglary the night before preliminary exams, and targeting Xia Xiaolan’s room specifically?
Xia Xiaolan had maintained a very low profile at school, working part-time to pay tuition—everyone knew she was poor! Sun Tian was also a newly assigned teacher, with a lower salary than Zhao Gang based on seniority.
If Zhao Gang wanted to steal money, why follow them to the Fengxian City guesthouse?
“The goal wasn’t theft. One preliminary exam, one college entrance exam—this Zhao Gang is suspicious.”
The veteran police officer’s logic was precise.
The city bureau sent Zhuo Weiping to assist with the case. Zhuo was Chief Liang’s former subordinate, and this lead from Chief Liang came at the perfect time. Zhuo had harbored doubts, but Xia Xiaolan was undoubtedly a victim. Zhuo knew Xia Xiaolan and greatly admired her self-reliance, which had led her to suppress her suspicions.
Zhao Gang had been unfortunate—his attempted burglary coincided with the Strike Hard campaign, resulting in a sentence of several years. He lost his job and was still serving time.
If he confessed honestly now, there might be a chance for sentence reduction. He wasn’t the mastermind—why didn’t he speak up?
Under renewed interrogation, Zhao Gang knew what to say:
“I wasn’t there to steal money. Xia Ziyu paid me to sabotage Xia Xiaolan’s college entrance exam. I originally planned to tamper with her exam admission ticket but couldn’t find the opportunity. In a moment of madness, I decided to act at night… It was Xia Ziyu, Xia Ziyu who instructed me.”
This made sense!
After Zhao Gang’s failed attempt before the preliminary exam, they resorted to hiring someone to take direct action before the college entrance exam.
“Xia Zhangzheng had no motive for the crime, but Xia Ziyu did. Both Zhao Gang and the thug were Xia Ziyu’s ideas. Both surnamed Xia, both from rural families—in one family, two golden phoenixes taking flight, and the first one trying to prevent the second’s success.”
Could jealousy be this terrifying?
“Contact Beijing and detain Xia Ziyu first. Wait for our people to bring her back to Shangdu!”
Meanwhile, they needed to interrogate Xia Zhangzheng again.
With Xia Ziyu as the mastermind and Xia Zhangzheng as an accomplice, it was unlikely that Zhang Cui knew anything. Just as they obtained Zhao Gang’s confession and sought Beijing’s assistance, the Beijing police went to find Xia Ziyu, only to discover she had already left Beijing.
She wasn’t at school.
She wasn’t at Zhang Cui’s rental place.
Zhang Cui herself had no idea—Xia Ziyu had told her to stay calm and wait for news. Zhang Cui had locked herself at home for two days.
Finally, they questioned Wang Jianhua, who was about to request leave for Xia Ziyu at school.
“Student Wang Jianhua, please cooperate with our investigation. Xia Ziyu is involved in a criminal case, and we need her whereabouts.”
Wang Jianhua had genuine feelings for Xia Ziyu and initially refused to speak. When Wang Guangping received the news and came to the police station, he slapped Wang Jianhua twice before the latter finally revealed:
“She went to Shangdu.”